Category: Commentary

Submitted to the AFRO by Kevin Daniels, Cashmere O’Neal and Paul Archibald The month of September is widely considered National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and it is observed as a time to bring education surrounding ways to identify those who are at risk for suicide.  According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), there is […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. No one questions the fact that for the past six decades, African Americans have overwhelmingly supported and voted for Democratic Party candidates for the United States Congress. In the upcoming 2018 midterm elections, African Americans by the millions will once again cast the clear majority of […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Lt. Governor Boyd K. Rutherford Over the past four years, I have had the privilege of visiting dozens of schools across our state. I have seen the strengths, and the areas that must be improved, within our school systems. I am proud of the work that Governor Hogan and I […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Susan Benton No matter where you lie on the political spectrum, it’s tough not to argue we are in turbulent times. Can we depend on our local and national government leaders to guide us through the 21st century challenges we are facing? Maybe. Can we depend solely on government leaders […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Jaia Thomas The percentage of African-American players in the NFL is 70 percent. Meanwhile, the percentage of African-Americans who own an NFL franchise is 0 percent and the percentage of African-Americans who are presidents of an NFL franchise is also 0 percent. It is also worth noting that out of […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Elijah Cummings For families `like my own, Labor Day each year is a civil rights holiday.  From our own life experience, we understand that attacks on our nation’s labor unions are attacks upon both our civil rights and our pocketbooks. When my children were young, I would tell them about […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Stephanie E. Myers During this divisive period in American history, our nation needs to decide if it wants to foster the cultural clashes seen so often today or, if it wants to foster cultural blending, along the lines of the fantasy American melting pot. Over the past two weeks, we […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Pascal Archimede Rap, this musical genre created in the 1970s in New York ghettos, often receives negative press due to some of its messages which glorify drugs, violence and misogyny. However, despite its dark side, psychiatrists at Cambridge University have chosen to use it to treat patients who suffer from […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Joe Marx I only saw Aretha Franklin perform once.  It was April, 1983; the venue was Constitution Hall in Washington D.C.  The Queen of Soul shared the evening with arguably the Earl of Soul, Ray Charles. Mr. Charles leaned into the crowd from his piano bench and took us on a spirited joy […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Kevin Daniels and Anthony Estreet All around the country, the month of August has been designated as National Wellness Month with the focus on self-care, managing stress and promoting healthy routines. The irony is that while the whole country has been deemed to be in a national state of crisis […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Kim F. Hall The following is an excerpt from the book If I Survive: Frederick Douglass and Family in the Walter O. Evans Collection. It has been edited for length and clarity. As I read If I Survive: Frederick Douglass and Family in the Walter O. Evans Collection, which offers […]

Submitted to the AFRO by Nia Hampton Calling out abuse in your community isn’t divisive, being abusive toward your community is. I know this because I wanted to “save” my abuser. My abuser wasn’t a man. She wasn’t an adult. We were both children at the time. My awareness and compassion for her pain made […]